After zero budget career Aus director gets mainstream outing

Although “Hours” is billed by producers Liz Kearney and Robert Connolly as Hilditch’s first feature, he has been a prolific writer-director of zero-budget pictures and shorts, and has collected prizes for “The Toll,” “At Play” and “Transmission,” a short film companion-piece to “Hours.”

Earlier this month “Hours” earned Hilditch the Critics’ Award for Best Australian feature at the Melbourne International Film Festival.

Filmed over five weeks in Western Australia, the film asks the question “What would you do on the last day on Earth?” It tells the story of a self-obsessed young man, played by Nathan Phillips, as he makes his way to the party-to-end-all-parties.

Roadshow, which previously released other key Australian films including “The Great Gatsby,” “Red Dog,” “Wolf Creek” and “The Castle,” has yet to set a release date.